Aftermath of Aliyah
by Seeker-of-Raven
Summary: Story is adopted from This is a What If ? Asking what if Tony was the one left behind in Israel at the end of season First couple of chapters will be almost the same as Aliyah AU story, but will diverge after chapter Rating may change to M, later in the This is my first attempt at writing a NCIS fanfiction
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of NCIS.

Author's Note: This story was adopted from _footballandrugbyislife22_ and his story _Aliyah AU_. The first two or three chapters will be almost identical to _Aliyah AU_.

_***Flashbacks***_

_~Thoughts~_

"Speech"

"_Speech in a Foreign Language"_

**_Aftermath of Aliyah_**

Chapter 1

**Tel Aviv, Israel**

**19****th**** May, 2009**

Ziva David was mentally and emotionally exhausted by the events that have taken place over the past few weeks. She was currently feeling an array of emotions, but the strongest of these emotions was hurt, anger, and betrayal. There had been many lies and manipulations that had been revealed by returning to Israel. The worst of these lies had been that her father, Mossad director, Eli David, had been using her when he sent Michael Rivkin to pose as her lover. What was worse was the fact that she fell for the lies and in doing so had let her guard down to easily.

_**Series of Flashbacks spanning Season 6 of NCIS**_

_It had all started when the new director of NCIS, Leon Vance, had dismantled the MCRT (Major Criminal Response Team) that she had been assigned to as a Mossad liaison officer by the late NCIS director, Jenny Shepherd. At first she had been upset and distraught over being separated from the team and from Tony. She had taken advantage of the time at NCIS to make friends and discover a part of herself that she had hidden away while being an officer in the Israeli Intelligence Service._

_Michael had helped heal the pain that the separation caused or at least to cover the scars. It had been easy to begin a relationship with him. They shared a number of things. From being officers in Mossad that shared many similar views on life and then there was the fact that they were both Jewish, it was just easier to have a relationship. Sure, he wasn't Tony, her partner at NCIS and the man that she may have truly loved. Ziva had realized that her feelings for Tony ran deeper than partners and friends after watching Tony's car explode on the screen in MTAC._

_Ziva had been the one to decide to continue her relationship with Michael upon her return to NCIS earlier in the year. She believed that her heart couldn't bear the pain of loving someone, but never being able to know if that person felt the same way. Truthfully, Ziva could have seen herself in a deeper relationship with Michael, if given enough time. Even if she had realized that the feelings weren't as strong or as passionate as her feelings were for Tony. Her feelings for Michael were still deep enough to be a foundation to a committed relationship and possibly have a life and family with someday._

_So it had been only natural for her to try and protect Michael. Even if in the back of her mind she wasn't doing the right thing. That in keep Michael safe she was choosing to betray her NCIS team's trust. When she had heard about the death of the ICE agent, she knew in her mind that Michael had been involved, somehow. Even if she fooled herself into thinking that he had nothing to do with the agent's death. _

_Then later, the dead body of Abin Tabal was discovered. Tabal was the leader of a terrorist cell that Michael had been vigorously killing off in Los Angeles. Although the autopsy that Ducky performed on Tabal led the NCIS's medical examiner to the conclusion that the terror suspect had committed suicide by taking a cyanide pill. However, Ziva's instincts told her that something was off about Tabal's death, that it had actually been murder. She decided to ignore her instincts out of fear of where the trail would lead to or whom it might lead to. _

_Then, a few days ago when she had burst through the front door to her apartment to find Michael with four gunshot wounds in his chest and Tony pointing a gun at her in defense, she had nearly lost control. The betrayal and anger that she felt was unlike anything that she had ever known before. To her it had appeared that Tony had gotten jealous of Michael and had killed him._

_Only, the autopsy and the autopsy report that Ducky had written up, had backed up Tony's own after-action report, had concluded that Tony had been acting in self-defense when he shot and killed Michael. Tony had, in fact, been trying to arrest Michael at the time. Still, the pain in her heart, which Michael's death had caused, not to mention the recent lies that had been uncovered, which showed how much her father had been manipulating her life. These things combined to make Ziva's thought process illogical, biased and unclear._

_**End Season 6 Flashbacks**_

Now, she found herself standing under the hot sun on an Israeli airbase, and locked in an intense staring match with her NCIS partner, Anthony "Tony" DiNozzo.

"I had no choice." Tony admits which only causes the anger to flare out of control in Ziva.

"That's a lie." Ziva says, as she seriously considers punishing him.

"Why would I lie to you, Ziva?" Tony asks while feeling his own anger begins to boil within him.

"To save your worthless ass!" Ziva quickly replies, the two of them starting to approach each other while continuing the intense conversation.

Tony curled his right hand into a tight ball as he approaches Ziva.

"From who, Vance? Mossad?" Tony asks in a state of disbelief.

Ziva and Tony were now mere inches away from each other. The anger and tension between them was skyrocketing by the second.

"You jeopardized your entire career and for what!?" The level of Ziva's voice steadily rising.

Tony pauses for a second before answering, "For you. He was playing you, Ziva."

"And for some reason you felt that it was your _**job**_, to protect _**me**_?" Ziva asks in anger.

"I did what I had to do." Tony stated which only caused Ziva to become angrier with him.

"You killed him!" Ziva growled.

"If I hadn't, you'd be having this conversation with him, but then again, maybe that's how you would prefer it?" Tony says, tilting his head to the side to make it clear to her that he asking a question that needed an answer.

For the briefest of moments, Ziva considered the possibility of what his question was implying. The very thought of Tony's death caused a panic to rise inside her. ~_No, I would never want Tony to be the one dead, not for a million years. ~ _Michael's death had truly saddened her, but if Tony had died, she would be a broken woman. Ziva internally berated herself for having those thoughts as she grew increasingly frustrated with herself.

She allowed the anger to take over her reasoning and in doing so replied with, "perhaps I would." Ziva was lying to herself and to Tony at that point. She was unaware of the brief flash of pain that broke across his face.

At that moment, Tony nearly fell to the ground in shock and disbelief as the words registered in his mind. Unshed tears burned at the back of his eyes and he was feeling the worst pain that he had ever felt in his life. The middle of his chest screamed in emotional agony while his knees started to slightly wobble.

Of all the years, that they have been co-workers, all the laughs they've shared, all the things that they have told each other, suddenly meant nothing to Ziva. Yes, Tony wanted Michael out of Ziva's life, partly out of jealously, but it was more than simple and childish jealously. Tony could see clearly that Michael was on edge. He was drinking too much and with the amount of killing he had been doing recently, he was unstable and dangerous to be around, especially for Ziva.

Tony's instincts had been telling him that Rivkin was a rogue officer, because Mossad was not allowed to operate on U.S. soil. The only reason that Tony had acted the way that he did was out of extreme concern for Ziva's safety. After the supposed suicide of Abin Tabal and with the fact that Tabal's computer had been completely wiped clean and therefore useless caused something to click into place for Tony; now, his instincts were telling him that Michael Rivkin was not a rogue officer after all. That Rivkin was in fact working under the direct orders of Eli David; orders that included having a relationship with Ziva.

To think that someone could play with Ziva's heart, greatly angered Tony. This led to Tony's decision that Michael needed to leave Ziva's life. It the dots had connected in Tony's mind. He knew for certain that Michael had killed the I.C.E agent and force fed Abin Tabal a suicide pill.

To think that all the love and care that Tony had for Ziva; that she would almost tell him instantly that she would have preferred that it was Tony who should have died and not Michael. This simple statement had just broken her heart. Anger quickly clouded his vision as he tried to think of a response to what Ziva had just said to him.

"Ok, why don't you just get it out? You want to punch me? Then go ahead, take a swing. Get it out of your system, go ahead, do it!" Tony shouted at Ziva.

Ziva stood there as she stared Tony down with a deadly glare. In all honesty, she never wanted to harm Tony. The comment alone raised her anger to another level.

"Be careful, Tony. Because, much like Michael; I only need one." Ziva stated coldly, trying to refrain herself from doing something stupid.

Tony smirked in bitter triumph when he realized what Ziva was angry about. "…And that's what you're really angry about, isn't it?" Tony said, "That's what's bothering you. It's not that he's dead. It's that your Mossad boyfriend got his ass kicked by a chump like me?" This was a statement; more than, a question that Tony made; the entire situation becoming clearer to him.

"You took advantage of him!" Ziva growled as she barely maintained her own anger.

"He attacked me! What was I suppo…!" Tony began to shout, but was quickly cut off by Ziva kicking his leg out from under him and forcefully throwing him to the concrete. This action by Ziva only served to re-fracture his arm.

"You saw a glass table! You pushed back! You dropped him on it! He was impaled in the side by a shard of glass. He was bloody! Gasping for air!" Ziva shouted out in frustration and anger.

"I guess you read my report." Tony responds while wincing slightly.

"I memorized it! You could have left it at that. You could have walked away, but NO! You let him up! You put four bullets in his chest!" Ziva screamed while pulling her sidearm out. She quickly pressed it to against Tony's chest, seriously considering putting a round in him.

"You weren't there!" Tony stresses this fact as his anger turned into sadness.

"You could have put one in his leg!" Ziva countered, as she pressed the gun into his left leg for emphasis.

"You. Weren't. There." Tony again stresses through clenched teeth.

"But I should have been!" Ziva screams as anger coats her every word. That's when another bitter realization hits Tony and with that thought he falls into an entirely new level of depression.

"You loved him." Tony states with bitterness.

Ziva pauses as she considers Tony's last statement. She comes to the conclusion that she never really loved Michael. Yes, she had strong feelings for him, but it was Tony that she loved: Although, Ziva would never admit these feelings to anyone, even herself.

Ziva was about to tell Tony that perhaps she did, but was stopped by something she saw in Tony's eyes, something that she couldn't read, at all. Then something clicked in her mind and she wondered what Tony had meant when he said that he had risked his career for her.

"Why did you really risk your career?" Ziva asked, the anger not quite dissipating, yet.

Tony gained a shocked look, but decided that it would be easier on the both of them, if the truth came out. With his mind made up, Tony admits, "Because I love you."

Ziva is stunned into a moment of silence. The smallest spark of hope ignites in heart, but is quickly masked by the anger that she is still feeling. She stands up and kicks Tony in the side, which causes him to draw in a sharp intake of pain.

"You don't deserve my love." Ziva growls out from between clenched teeth, before turning and walking away. Behind her, she leaves a heartbroken and depressed Tony lying on the ground. Tears start to flow freely from his eyes before dropping to the concrete.

Ziva approaches Gibbs as they begin to load back onto the transport plane that will take them back to Washington DC. Tony has been able to stand up and slowly limp to where the transport plane is located, but life has lost all meaning to him by this point.

"I cannot work with him." Is the simple statement that Ziva makes to Gibbs?

Gibbs, sighs as he runs his hand through his hair, as he does this, Gibbs notices Eli David smiling in victory from behind black SUV. At that moment, Gibbs knew that if he let Ziva; go back to Eli that she would be in serious danger. Still, it hurt that two of his agents, which he considered his children, would not be able to work together. This put him in the position of having to pick one or the other. He figured that Ziva was the one that needed his support even if it destroyed Tony.

"I'll talk to Vance about Tony's position on the team," Gibbs said, the tough decision made.

Ziva gave a grateful, but sad smile as she hugged Gibbs.

"Thank you," Ziva replies before turning to board the transport. With Gibbs still on the runway and Tony making his way to the plane; Ziva immediately sits down in one of the seats. She immediately closes her eyes and falls asleep, the events of the day quickly catching up to her.

Gibbs sighed as he turned around and began to walk towards director Vance.

"Ziva can't work with Tony, anymore." Gibbs said, "With Ziva's best interests in mind; it is my belief that Tony would best if Tony were transferred out of DC." His heart was breaking with every word. Gibbs felt that he was, in essence, banishing the man he considered his own son from his home.

Vance kept silent, only giving a slight nod to show that he had heard Gibbs request. Quickly, Vance considered which positions at NCIS that he could reassign Tony to. Then the grim realization hit him. There was only one position within NCIS that was open, since literally every other spot was already filled. Tony would have to become the NCIS liaison agent to Mossad.

"Are you sure about this Gibbs?" Vance had to ask, finding himself in a difficult position and not liking it one bit.

Gibbs only response was to nod grimly before turning and heading towards a seat on the transport plane. All the while, wondering if at least some friendship would be able to be salvaged after everything was said and done.

Meanwhile, Vance sighed as he walked off the transport to meet Tony who was slowly approaching the transport plane. "It has been decided by Gibbs and I that with agent David's best interests in mind that you be transferred out of DC." Vance stated, after getting within a few feet of Tony.

The director of NCIS was already morning the loss of a good agent. Even Vance felt Tony's sadness as he saw the look of pure shock and depression cross Tony's face. _Shit! I barely know the man and I already feel sorry for him. ~_

Tony couldn't even speak as the breath left his him. _~ I'm being sent away from the team, from DC. From the team that I consider family and the place that I've grown to love and consider my home. But, it has to be done; it has to be done for Ziva. ~_

"I understand, director." Tony replied grimly before starting off for the transport.

Vance is quick to place a hand on Tony's shoulder, causing the younger agent to turn back around to face Vance with a questioning look on his face. The NCIS director couldn't even look Tony in the eye, his own heart unable to take the sadness in the younger man's eyes. The look was bound to grow worse after he learned of his new position within the agency.

"I'm sorry, Tony. The only other position available outside of DC is…as the NCIS liaison agent to Mossad." Vance said with a sad sigh.

Tony's eyes sprang filled with unshed tears that threatened to fall, but he wouldn't allow them to fall, his legs felt weak, like they could buckle at any second. _~ I'm being banished…from my own country. ~_

"I understand, director." Tony said with grim awareness of the situation. He squared his shoulders and hid is emotions for later, when he was alone; he would let his anger and sadness out.

For a moment, Vance feared that he would get a punch delivered to his face, but realized that even through Tony was angry; it was him who the agent was angry at. Vance also realized that not everything Tony was feeling was anger. To him, Tony looked like a broken man.

"Make sure Ziva is safe at NCIS." Tony stated, "Do everything in your power to keep her safe. She's hurting right now and she needs time to heal." Tony continues to says, "Do your absolute best to make sure that she's ok. Promise me this," The determination thick in his voice as he finishes stating his requests.

Vance only needed to take one look at Tony to know that this was not debatable.

"I will," Vance says as he reassures Tony before getting back on the transport plane.

"We're good to go!" Vance shouts to the man working the transport's doors.

The transport crewman gives a nod before pressing the button that would seal the door closed. At this moment, Gibbs looks up to see Tony standing outside the plane.

"WAIT! TONY!" Gibbs shouts as he starts to stand up.

"AS of now, he is the NCIS liaison agent to Mossad. I'm sorry Gibbs." Vance says, as the doors shut and the plane moves to the runway where it will take off from.

Gibbs is quick to shove Vance out of the way, so that he can reach the man working the controls to the door.

"OPEN THESE DAMN DOORS NOW!" Gibbs shouts at the man in desperation and trying to be heard over the loud noise from the plane's engines.

"The plane has already begun to lift off. The doors are locked and they're not going to open until we get back to DC." The plane's crew member said.

Gibbs felt as if he'd been punched in the stomach, his breath having been stolen from him as he collapsed into one of the seats, his mouth agape in shock. _~ He's going to get killed if he's left with Mossad. What have I done? ~_

Tony stared at the C-130 as it took off and flew out into the sky, heading in the direction of Washington DC. Slowly, Tony turned around and locked eyes with Eli David. He saw the smug look on the older man's face. Resigned to his fate, Tony slowly limped over to Eli, while trying to ignore the evil smirk that his new boss was giving him.

"Director Vance has just assigned me to be your NCIS liaison agent." Tony said grimly. Eli smiled as he offered Tony his hand, much to the younger man's dismay.

"Well now that you are one of my people. I should welcome you with open arms. Welcome to Tel Aviv, Israel, NCIS Liaison Agent, DiNozzo." Eli says, "Come, we have much to discuss." With this said, Eli climbs into the black SUV. Tony follows behind the older man, moving slower. The SUV starts to drive off towards Mossad's headquarters.

_~ What the hell is going on here? ~_


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Again, I do not own any part of NCIS.

Author's Note: I want to thank everyone for the wonderful reviews. I am sorry that I have taken so long to update, but I was in the middle of moving and it has taken awhile to get everything sorted and a new internet connection set up. Not to mention having to learn the routine at my new job.

_**Flashbacks**_

_~Thoughts~_

"Speech"

"_Languages other than English"_

Consequences of Anger

Chapter 2

The ride from the Israeli airbase to Mossad headquarters was nothing more than a blur of images that melded together in Tony's mind. The black SUV was filled with the sound of three distinct voices, two men and one woman, who spoke in their native tongue of Hebrew. A conversation that was being held between Mossad director, Eli David, the SUV's driver, Mossad officer, Malachi Ben-Gidon and Eli's bodyguard for the day, one Mossad officer Liat Tuvia. Officer Tuvia was currently occupying the SUV's front passenger seat.

Tony was convinced that his life now resembled a black and white picture. In his mind, everything in his life had suddenly become void of color or meaning, he was left feeling empty inside and his future now looked bleak. The only feeling other than emptiness that Tony felt was unbelievable pain that started in his chest and spread everywhere else. The physical pain from his fractured arm paled in comparison to the emotional pain that he was currently feeling. He simply stared out of the SUV's window and watched as the cars passed by; a deep depression was quickly taking over. Tony felt like he was on the edge of a cliff and he was very close to falling off.

He had been left behind in Tel Aviv, where he figured that he must have hundreds of enemies within Mossad; with Eli David being the most powerful of them all. Tony felt betrayed by a man that he considered to be more of a father to him than his own father ever was. Granted, Tony realized the reason why Gibbs did what he did and Tony understood the why, but it still didn't stop the pain it caused. That coupled with Ziva's complete rejection of his love for her and the fire and hate that she felt towards him, caused life to lose all meaning to him.

If Tony were to be completely honest with him-self, the only thing keeping him from grabbing Liat's sidearm and putting a bullet in his brain was the simple curiosity at what Eli David wanted from him. Truth be told, Tony could care less if Eli threw him into a dark cell and threw away the key, or had him tortured to death, because there was absolutely no punishment or physical pain that Tony could possibly feel to take his mind off the emotional scars left on him, nothing could supersede them.

**Mossad Headquarters**

**Tel Aviv, Israel**

**19****th**** May, 2009**

A half hour after leaving the airbase, the black SUV, pulled into a parking spot outside of Mossad headquarters. The building that housed the very secretive and highly dangerous Mossad was an impressive site. It had a massive parking lot and the exterior of the building was made of a dark colored bulletproof glass that made it impossible to see into the building. Soon enough, the SUV was parked within the subbasement of the building. Immediately, after parking the vehicle was surrounded by five bodyguards that had exited various elevators to ensure that the director made it safely inside the building. Tony had quietly slipped out of the SUV and followed Eli into a metal elevator.

Liat pressed her hand against the bio-metric plate and pressed one of the buttons on the panel inside the elevator. The doors of the elevator closed before it began the ascent to the top floor of the building. It was an awkward silence that had fallen upon the elevators occupants.

Tony was staring blankly at the closed metal doors. His movements and actions having become robotic in nature; he tried hard to keep himself from showing any kind of emotion, but occasionally a look of pain or sadness could be seen in his eyes. Within a minute or two, the elevator came to an abrupt stop and a second later the elevator doors opened to reveal a bright hallway that lead to Eli's office. Tony followed behind Eli as they made their way to the older man's office. Malachi and Liat took positions opposite each other as they stood outside the office door.

Eli had quickly made his way to his desk, where he took a seat in the black leather office chair, while taking his glass out of a hidden pocket in his suit. Once the glasses were on, he took a file from his desk and began to read it. Tony sat in a chair on the opposite side of the desk. He stared at his hands while he waited for Eli to finish reading the file. It was several minutes later before he finished reading and closed the file before looking at Tony.

"As of now agent DiNozzo, you are the NCIS liaison to Mossad." A stoic expression was in place as Eli said this.

"Anything I say or tell you to do will be strictly followed. No questions asked. Do you understand?" Eli asked coldly. The cold and ruthless predator that Eli truly was finally started to show.

The only thing that Tony could do was give a stiff nod of his head to show that he did understand.

"Good. Malachi will have a bag of clothes and supplies for you. You will need them for your mission." Eli stated before standing.

Tony gave him a questioning look as he to stand up.

"You were correct about Officer Rivkin. He was following my orders. Orders to find the location of a terrorist camp in Somalia," Eli said before briefly pausing to allow Tony to absorb this information.

"Your director was able to pull files from Abin Tabal's computer. So now, what must be done next is to send a small team to Somalia; in order, to eliminate Saleem Ulman. Ulman is the leader of this particular terrorist camp." Eli smoke with stoically.

"Saleem is responsible for many Israeli deaths and for this he must die. Originally I was going to send Officer Rivkin, but since you killed him. I will be sending you, along with officers Ben-Gidon and Tuvia. Be ready to leave in one hour." Eli finished saying as the door opened for Tony, so he could leave.

Tony gave another quick nod before turning and limping out of the office. Liat escorted Tony to where he could change clothes and prepare for the upcoming mission. Officer Tuvia had taken a good look at Tony and immediately felt bad for him.

In Mossad, you were taught and trained to not display emotions, to become an emotionless and ruthless killer that would serve Mossad and Israel to the death. But, never in her own life had she seen a man so broken, so depressed. It truly pained her heart to see someone this broken. She made a note to talk to him once they were on the Damocles.

The elevator doors opened up to reveal another floor. Malachi stood waiting for them with three duffel bags slung over his shoulders. Each duffel bag contained cash, ammunition, guns, knives, fake IDs, credentials and an extra pair of clothing. Malachi handed a bag to Tony, and he simply took it and stepped out of the elevator with Liat. They escorted Tony to a mission briefing room, where Officer Amit Hadar would give them a full briefing on the mission.

An hour later, Malachi and Liat left Tony in the mission room and back to the elevator. When the elevator doors had closed, Malachi and Liat turned to each other at the same time, both having shared the same thoughts.

"He's a broken man." Liat stated sadly.

Malachi nodded solemnly as he remembered the way Tony had moved, acted, and even how is eyes held nothing but emptiness.

"His heart was broken by Ziva. Add that to being abandoned by a man that he viewed as a surrogate father in the form of Agent Gibbs." Malachi replied with a sigh, "I honestly cannot say I am surprised." He finished saying, letting out another shaky breath as he slid to the elevator floor.

Liat joined him and waited a minute before something hit her. "Wait, how do you know agent DiNozzo's relationship with NCIS?" She asked, amused that Malachi had such in depth knowledge.

"I read his newest psych profile Director David had written after Michael died." Malachi replied with honesty.

"And what do you mean by his heart being broken by Ziva?" Liat asked with skeptically.

Malachi sighed, the simple cloud of sadness that followed Tony getting to him, as well.

"Director David gave me orders to follow Ziva and listen to any conversation she had with anyone." Malachi mentioned, "She confronted agent DiNozzo and had a big argument. Dinozzo told Ziva that he loved her and that was the reasoning behind risking his career. Ziva rejected him rather coldly." Malachi explained.

Liat felt a lone tear slip from her eyes as she rested her head against his shoulder. Malachi noticed this and turned her head to face him. Malachi wiped the tear away with his thumb and pressed a light kiss to her lips. Liat smiled slightly as she rested her head on his chest.

"_Ahuvi, _sometimes this job can really be straining on my emotions. I know that I do not know him, but he seemed so depressed. I feel bad for him. He should not be going on this mission." Liat comments with a heavy sigh.

"I know, Liat. Sometimes this job can be straining on my own emotions, but it is simply the price we pay to serve and protect Israel. Still, I agree with you and feel the same way. DiNozzo should not be on this mission." Malachi says feeling badly for Tony.

"We have to protect him to make sure that he survives this and keep him from falling off the edge." She added, "He's in a deep depression and I can only fear that soon enough he will get himself killed or take his own life. I saw him eyeing my Jericho. I can only guess that he was considering suicide." Liat said with sadness.

Malachi kissed the side of his girlfriend and partner's head and held Liat in a comforting hug.

"We will, together. NCIS may have betrayed him, but I refuse to let him fall through the cracks. We will raise him as one of our own, from the ground up if we must. Protect him, treat him like family." Malachi said confidently.

Liat gave a large smile as she kissed Malachi's chest. "I agree," she said, allowing herself to rest against the comforting arms of Malachi's for a few more minutes before going to retrieve Tony from the mission room and heading to the Damocles.

**Washington D.C Metro Area**

**Gibbs House**

**20****th**** May, 2009**

Ziva awoke to find herself in Gibb's house. She was lying on his couch, a soft blanket draped over her as the fireplace warmed the living room. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes as she looked around the room. Quickly, noticing Gibbs watching her with sad eyes.

"Finally awake," Gibbs commented, bringing a small smile to Ziva's face.

"Why am I in your home? I thought I fell asleep on the transport?" Ziva asked in confusion as to how she got from a seat in a military transport to Gibbs living room couch. Judging by the darkness outside, it was nighttime. Gibbs smiled sadly as he slipped from a cup of coffee.

"You were exhausted when we got back. I literally had to carry you into my car and I drove you back here. You know, just to make sure you got some rest." Gibbs replied, a lone tear falling down his cheek.

Ziva furrowed her eyebrows in confusion as well as, worry when she noticed the tear falling to the carpet. _~Ok, that's not good. Gibbs never cries. ~ _This had been the first time she had seen Gibbs…well…cry.

"Are you okay, Gibbs?" Ziva asked, concern etched into her face.

Gibbs failed to notice her presence as he saw all the memories he ever had with Tony run through his mind, all the cases, through the hard times, through the thick and thin. It pained him even more when those memories ended with the bitter memory of Vance telling him that Tony would be assigned as NCIS liaison to Mossad and the broken look on Tony's face which he had seen before the transport doors closed.

The guilt swam through his mind as he felt his chest knot even tighter. He felt like a true bastard for betraying Tony like that. Not to mention the fact that Tony would be in constant danger in Mossad, as he must have made enemies there, with Eli David sitting at the top of the list. Gibbs had betrayed Tony; he betrayed him and threw him to the wolves.

"Gibbs, you're scaring me. What is wrong?" Ziva asked, now becoming really worried and more scared by the moment.

"Tony's been reassigned. He's now the NCIS liaison to Mossad. He's in Tel Aviv right now." Gibbs spoke in a shaky voice.

Ziva stared at Gibbs in disbelief. Her breath felt like it had been stolen from her body. "No…no you-you are joking, yes?" Ziva pleaded with him, unable to accept that she had truly driven Tony away from DC, and that he could be gone from her life.

Gibbs shook his head solemnly, and Ziva felt as if she had been kicked in the stomach, her hands were suddenly sweaty and shaking. "No…no…how…but…" Ziva stuttered, unable to form words, her throat becoming dry.

Gibbs sighed heavily before replying, "Since you couldn't work with Tony any longer, he…uh…had to be reassigned out of DC. NCIS liaison to Mossad was the only available position."

It took Ziva a moment to understand what he meant when he said that she couldn't work with Tony anymore. _~ No, no, no! I did not mean that! I was confused, angry with Tony! Why could I not keep my stupid mouth shut!? I love him! I have to fix this! ~ _

"But he has enemies in Mossad. My father included! He's going to get killed! No, there has to be a solution! We can bring him back, right? He's still NCIS!" Ziva screamed, already standing up to go to NCIS as tears welled in her eyes.

"Ziva, why do you want him back anyways?" Gibbs shouted in frustration, the guilt overwhelming him and needed an outlet.

Ziva panicking and in the spur of the moment, she let the truth come out.

"BECAUSE I LOVE HIM!" Ziva screamed at Gibbs as the tears start flowing from her eyes.

Gibbs was stunned into silence, his mouth agape at the confession. _~Jeez… ~_

"Then…why did you tell me…that you couldn't work with him…" Gibbs was clearly angered and having a hard time forming words.

"Because I was angry at him! I wasn't thinking clearly, but now I am! We have to get him back, Gibbs!" Ziva shouted, desperate to bring Tony back to NCIS and into her waiting arms. Gibbs exhaled as he ran a hand through his hair.

"Get in the car, Ziver. We'll go talk to Vance and settle this." Gibbs spoke quickly. He grabbed his coat from the back of the couch and slipped it on. Ziva was already at the door. Gibbs put his hand under Ziva's chin, lifting it so that he could look her in the eyes.

"It'll be alright." Gibbs tried to assure her by saying. If he were to being honest, he was trying to assure himself more than Ziva. Ziva nodded as she wiped another tear from her eyes. They got into Gibb's charger and sped off to NCIS.

**NCIS Headquarters**

Before long they were stepping off the elevators at NCIS. They both ran up the steps to upper level and burst into Vance's office. Vance was sitting at his desk with his head in his hands.

"Director, we have to get Tony back here!" Ziva all but shouted at Vance.

Vance shook his head sadly, keeping his head in his hands. Gibbs angrily approached Vance, but Leon held up his hand and slowly stood up. They were both surprised to see that he had been crying recently, his eyes were red and swollen.

"It's too late. Director David has already sent DiNozzo on the mission that Officer Rivkin was supposed to have. He's not coming back until the mission is over." Vance stated sadly.

Gibbs punched the wall in anger and frustration while Ziva began to sob, sinking into the closest chair. She brought her legs up into the chair. Gibbs and Vance exchanged confused looks, but before they could ask her, she answered for them.

"The terrorist camp mission is a suicide mission! He's going to get himself killed!" Ziva screamed before breaking into another round of sobs.

Gibbs shakily sat down in another chair, unable to breathe. Vance stared blankly at Ziva. The horror of the situation was all to shocking to comprehend immediately. They all had the same thoughts as they mourned the danger Tony was in.

_~ What have I done?" ~ Was_ the thought that went through all three of their minds?

**The Damocles…Somewhere in the Indian Ocean**

**20****th**** May, 2009**

Tony sat on his new bed on the Damocles in silence. In his hands was a photo, a photo that he carried with him no matter where he was, or what he was doing. In the photo was the whole NCIS family: Gibbs, Ziva, Tony, McGee, Abby, Ducky, Jimmy, hell even Vance was in the photo. They were all smiling as they stood in the bullpen together, taking celebration pictures for being the top MCRT in the entire NCIS agency with a closure rate of 98%.

Gibbs was standing off to the far-left side, hiding a smile as he sipped his coffee. To the immediate right of Gibbs was Abby, who was hugging McGee tightly. McGee had a goofy smile on his face as he had his arms wrapped around Abby and resting his chin on the top of her head.

Ducky and Jimmy stood side-by-side in their autopsy scrubs. They both were smiling as Ducky had been telling Jimmy a story about the time he did an autopsy on a man who had a live bomb in his stomach. Vance was smirking as he had his arms crossed in front of his chest, keeping a sense of authority and power, but all the same having a good time. Ziva was smiling as she rested her head on Tony's shoulder. Tony was wearing a big grin while his arms were wrapped around her, securing her tightly to him.

Tony had tears trickling down his face as he realized that he might not ever see them again. He wouldn't be able to have his typical Thursday night steak dinners with Gibbs anymore, a man he considered a father to him. He wouldn't be able to tease and play pranks on McGee, his probie that he treated like the sibling he never had as a child. No more bear-hugs with Abby, the woman he treated like a sister. No more wise advice from Ducky, a man he adopted as a grandfather. No more playfully assuming authority over Jimmy, a man that had grown to become one of his strongest friends during the time he led the team and Gibbs was in Mexico. But most of all, no more Ziva, his partner for the last three years, the love of his life, the woman who had stolen his heart, the woman he would give his life for in a heartbeat.

The door to his temporary creaked open before shutting a few seconds later. Looking up to see who his visitor was, he was surprised to see Liat standing by the door, a nervous smile on her face.

"Hello, since we are on the same team for this mission. I thought that it would be only proper that we properly introduce ourselves to each other, not? She asked, giving a friendly smile.

Tony forced a weak smile while nodding his head, slowly.

"I am Officer Liat Tuvia." She said as she extended her hand to him.

Tony shook it weakly as he looked her in the eyes. "Agent Anthony DiNozzo, but I go by Tony." He replied bleakly before turning his attention to the photo.

Seeing no other way to make conversation, she sat next to him and looked at the photo to. _~ This must be the 'family' he had developed at NCIS… ~_

"Are those people part of your team at NCIS?" Liat asked, pointing at the photo.

"Everyone," Tony spoke as a lone tear dripped onto the spot where Ziva was. Liat felt her heart strings being pulled at as she looked at Tony with sympathy.

"Are you okay, Tony?" Liat asked already knowing the answer, but asking anyway.

Tony didn't respond as he lost himself in the photo again.

"If you ever need cheering up, or you just need someone to talk to, come find me." She spoke sweetly, ruffling Tony's hair playfully.

Tony gave a small but sincere smile before returning his gaze back onto the photo.

Liat was about to stand up and leave when the door opened and Malachi rushed in with panic clear in his eyes.

"A marine on board the ship was caught snooping around and started a firefight with the crew. They think we're with the marine!" Malachi commented loudly as he tossed a Jericho to Tony.

Tony caught the hand gun easily as he pocketed the treasured photo. Liat brought out her own Jericho and nodded. The three of them left the small cabin room. They created a tight formation as they started to search the ship, looking out for any crew member on the ship.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I still do not own or have anything to do with the actual television show, NCIS.

Author's Note: I didn't think the title of the story was very good, so I have changed it.

_***Flashbacks***_

_~ Thoughts ~_

"Speech"

"_Speaking in a language other than English"_

_**Aftermath of Aliyah **_

Chapter 3

**On board the Cargo Ship Damocles**

**Somewhere off the coast Africa, in the Indian Ocean**

**21****st**** May, 2009**

The sound of gunfire could be heard echoing throughout the ship as Tony, Malachi and Liat moved cautiously through the large ship. Since, Tony was still in a cast, he made sure to watch the rear as Malachi and Liat took point. A man wielding a large knife suddenly came barreling towards them, only to be quickly disposed of by a bullet to the head, fired from Liat's gun. Multiple shouts could be heard directing the rest of the ship's crew to the location of the gunfire.

"Stay alert and be prepared for anything." Malachi informed them while he ruthlessly shot a man in the eye from around the corner.

Two more men, wielding UZIs came from behind, but Tony was able to kill both of them with only three shots from his Jericho. They continued to search the ship for any and all crew-members. After about ten minutes, they cleared the entire ship but the control room.

The three of them had gathered outside the control room door. They listened intently for any signs of life. Waiting for several minutes before hearing a slight click was heard from inside the room. Malachi kicked the door open, his Jericho out and aimed at the ship's captain.

"Shoot and we will all die!" The captain shouted with a thick accent. "I have this entire ship rigged to blow! Do you see this?" The captain asked, holding his hand to show that he held a remote trigger.

"Careful, it's a dead man's switch." Tony commented, not at all amused at the impending threat.

"That is right! You shoot me and this ship goes down!" The captain shouted, his hands shaking and his eyes were wide.

Malachi and Liat looked at each other with fear in their eyes. This action did not go unnoticed by Tony. _~ I may have found my peace with dying already, but Malachi and Liat have not. They don't deserve to die, yet. ~_

"Don't you dare activate the detonator?" Tony snarled as he to a small step toward the ship's captain.

Out of the corner of his eye, Tony noticed a slight movement behind a large wooden crate. Before he had time to react, one of the remaining crewmen popped out from behind the crate and began firing his UZI, trying to spray them with bullets. The bullets whizzed by Tony as he unloaded three rounds into the man's chest.

Tony's eyes widened further when he saw the captain fall to the ship's deck. A bullet had lodged itself neatly between the man's eyes. A half second later, a large explosion resonated through the entire ship, the floor vibrated with enough force to register on the Richter scale. Turning around, his eyes wide with panic, Tony saw that Malachi and Liat were bleeding and in pain from being shot; Malachi was clutching at his right side and Liat was desperately wrapping a tourniquet around a wound in her left leg.

"Come on, we need to get off this ship!" Tony shouted, "Let's get to the life rafts!"

He ignored the pain in his broken clavicle, to wrap Liat's right arm around his shoulder, so he could support her as she limped along, Malachi following closely behind. They quickly made their way through the ship in search of the life rafts. All the while stumbling into walls several times as the ship rocked, quickly sinking into the water. If they didn't get off the ship within the next five minutes, they would drown. Their coffins would forever be the cold, metal confines of the Damocles.

"You had to shoot the captain!" Tony growled, Malachi crashed into him, nearly causing him to fall down some metal stairs.

"I didn't shoot him! The ricochet from that crewman's weapon killed him!" Malachi shouted, groaning in agony as the pain in his side stepped up a few notches.

Liat swore multiple times in Hebrew as she tripped sending both her and Tony crashing to the ground. Tony grumbled as he hoisted Liat back up within seconds, all while willing his body to go on, the bay that held the life rafts in his sights.

They stumbled through the hatch, where they were surprised to see not one life raft, but a single speedboat with a first aid kit was resting against a wall. Working together, the trio pushed the speedboat into the water where it was pointed at a large hole that the explosion had made. This allowed them to go straight through and back out into the ocean. Stumbling onto the speedboat, Tony quickly taking the controls as he floored the gas, and they swiftly sped out into the free ocean. Behind them, a much larger explosion blew, and the ship sunk into the water.

Once they had moved a safe distance away from the ship, Tony stepped away from the controls to check on Malachi and Liat who were both tending to their own wounds. The good news was that both of their gunshot wounds had been through-and-through, so no immediate surgery was required. Tony knelt down between the two of them and assisted with wrapping large bandages over each wound to help stem the blood flow as both Malachi and Liat popped antibiotics into their mouths and dry swallowed, hoping to prevent infection.

"That was…way…to close." Malachi said between deep breaths.

Liat chuckled slightly at the understatement, but chose not to comment on it as another wave of pain rolled through her leg before groaning in agony. Malachi and Tony both looked at her with concern. Malachi scooted over to her.

"_Ahuvi, _are you alright?" Malachi asked, pressing a kiss to her cheek while she leaned closer to him.

"What do you think?" Liat asked, the sarcasm dripping with every word while grimacing from the pain.

Tony looked at the couple, dumbstruck at the revelation that they had to be dating, but he still felt the need to ask.

"Hold on a second. Are you two a couple?" Tony asked with a hint of a smile.

Malachi and Liat both cocked their heads to the side, confused as to what that could mean. _~ 'oh right, they aren't 100% familiar with the English language, just like Ziva. Fuck, I need to get her out of my head. My love for her hasn't faded, but it's a lost cause. She'll never feel the same way. Never has and never will. All I'm doing is torturing my-self by thinking about her, but I can't help it.' ~_

"Are you two dating? You know, in a relationship?" Tony asked.

Both Malachi and Liat looked away from Tony sheepishly as they made eye contact, a slight blush creeping to their cheeks. Tony couldn't help but feel the twinge of jealousy in his chest as he watched them. Because, even though the three of them were in the same ugly situation; at least, Malachi and Liat had each other, then they had something to live for.

What did Tony have to live for? Protecting Malachi and Liat and not letting them be torn from away from each other. _~ Just because my life is over. It doesn't mean I can stand by and let Malachi and Liat lose their lives, both physically and emotionally. They're both hurt; they won't be able to make it in Somalia. When we get into port, I'm going to force them to get medical attention from a hospital and then I'm going to finish this damn mission myself. Hopefully, I'll be successful in eliminating Saleem. Who knows, if I get lucky, I might even get killed, and my emotional pain can finally stop, and I can drift away into nothingness._

"Well I'm happy for the both of you. Hold on to each other and never let go. Love is not something meant to be taken for granted. Cherish it and keep it alive in your hearts." Tony spoke sadly as he turned back to the steering wheel, where a map with directions to Somalia had been stored. Tony stepped on the gas and drove towards a port in Somalia where they could dock.

Malachi and Liat both felt guilt at hearing Tony's words. They realized that he had never been able to live by that very code. That he didn't get the opportunity to love and cherish Ziva, because she didn't reciprocate the feelings Tony had for her. That instead of love, it was only hate that Ziva felt for Tony or so they believed.

A lone tear trickled down Tony's cheek bas he continued to drive on towards Somalia. _~ I guess this is it. I'll never be able to return to NCIS, never be able to return to the people that I consider my family. Although, I have a right to be angry with Gibbs_ and_ Ziva, I can't really blame them. ~_

_~ If Ziva can't work with me, then fine. I would never let her go back to Mossad or her manipulative Eli David. He would probably have sent her on this very same mission that I am on. I understand why Gibbs chose to keep Ziva around, to protect her from her father. I would never, in a million years, want the roles between Ziva and me to be switched. ~_

_~ Still, it does pain me that possibly within a few days, I could be dead. But alas, I have accepted my fate and even embrace it. The emotional pain and scars Gibbs and Ziva etched into my heart is too much for me to handle. It would be so much easier to die lonely and depressed than to live lonely and depressed. Man, I sound like a real fucking downer right now. And here I thought the lonely and depressed person that I would ever have to deal with on a regular bases' was Gibbs. ~_

…**Sea Port in Somalia…**

Several hours later, the speedboat pulled into one of the ports in Somalia. The docks were bustling with activity as various women waited for their boyfriends or husbands to return, children laughing and giggling as they ran around vendors were located in various spots selling everything from fruit to toys.

Tony turned around to see both Malachi and Liat groaning as they slowly stood up. He rushed over and pushed them back into their seats, causing them to both look at him in question.

"You two aren't going on the mission." Tony said, determined to not let them risk their lives.

_~ What they have is worth too much to squander or risk over a suicide mission. ~_

"Yes we are." Liat growled stubbornly as she tried to get to her feet, but the pain in her leg sent her falling back into her seat.

"See? You can barely stand up! I'll finish this mission myself, while you two go to a hospital to get medical attention, and then you're going back to Israel as fast as you can." Tony ordered. Malachi shook his head furiously, anger radiating off of him.

"No! That is suicide! We will come with you and together we will finish the mission!" Malachi shouted, "We will not let you go off and get yourself killed simply because you're feeling depressed that Ziva doesn't love you." He tried to make a point, but immediately regretting his words as he saw Tony's his words when he saw Tony's eyes darken, anger quickly filling them.

Liat glared menacingly at Malachi as she punched her boyfriend in the chest. Hard! Tony took a few deep breaths to maintain his composure before turning back to glare at Malachi.

"You will not be going on this mission." Tony growled, drawing glares from both his companions.

"Or what? You cannot and will not stop us from going with you. We're in this together!" Malachi angrily said, unwilling to let Tony get himself killed.

_~ I made a promise to keep Tony safe. To make sure he had a lifeline to cling to, to make sure he had something to live for. I will not let him do this! ~_

Tony exhaled as he closed his eyes. _~ Why can't they see that they need medical attention, and no matter what I say, they're going to be stubborn and try to make sure that I don't get myself killed, but to stubborn to admit to the failure of the mission. I have to do something drastic. Hopefully, they will forgive me. ~_

Tony took out two Jericho's from his belt and pistol-whipped both Mossad officers, knocking them out cold. Next, he grabbed the mission packet and map from Malachi's back pocket that had the coordinates to the camp and got off the boat. Once, he was on the dock, he immediately started shouting.

"There are two people on that speedboat who have been shot! They need medical attention!"

Tony had successfully drawn the attention of nearby port authorities that had been close by. Within seconds, the authorities were in the speedboat, tending to Malachi and Liat while speaking through radios to get paramedics to their location.

Tony couldn't help but give a small smirk of satisfaction that his hastily put together plan had worked. Soon enough, medics had arrived and were loading Malachi and Liat on gurneys where they were both rolled to ambulances and driven to hospital.

Once, he was sure that his two companions were taken care of; Tony took time to study the map for a few moments. When he was sure that he understood the basics of the map, he went to the parking lot where he found a black jeep. Tony busted the window open and crawled through the opening. He was careful to avoid any glass as he hot-wired the Jeep and sped out of the parking lot, driving off towards the camp, where he could hopefully kill Saleem.

…**Sometime Later…**

Malachi woke up in a hospital bed with his head throbbing from where Tony had knocked him out with the pistol. His side was also numb from all the pain medicines in his system. It was then he realized what had happened and quickly looked around to see Liat was fast asleep in another hospital bed.

"Liat!" Malachi shouted, causing her to wake with a start.

It took a few moments for Liat to realize where she was and who was talking to her. When awareness did come to her, her eyes grew wide as she too looked around the room for Tony.

Realizing that he was not there, a panicked Liat shouted, "_Harrah!_ He went on the mission by himself! He's going to get himself killed!"

She started to try and pull out her IV from her arm, causing the alarm to go off. A doctor strolled in, wearing a slight smile on his face. The doctor quickly shut the door, closed the blinds, and turned off Liat's hospital alarm.

"Do not worry Officer Ben-Gideon, Officer Tuvia, you are safe here." The doctor was quick to reassure them.

At hearing this declaration, Malachi and Liat's eyes grew wide with panic. _~ How does the doctor know our true identities? ~_

The doctor sensed their worry, so he quickly explained himself. "I used to be a Mossad officer, and I remember training with the both of you. I work here as a doctor now, and don't worry, I have not revealed your identities."

Malachi and Liat felt the panic lift from their minds, only to be quickly replaced with worry over the fact that Tony had gone solo on a suicide mission.

"We have to leave immediately!" Malachi voiced, making a move to get up before falling back onto the bed due to pain radiating from his side that had suddenly made it-self known.

"Neither of you are in any condition to leave at the moment." The doctor said, "The earliest that I would release you is five days."

He received glares from an unhappy Liat and Malachi.

"Our partner went on a suicide mission by himself! He's going to get himself killed! We have to find him and prevent him from going on the mission!" Liat growled.

The doctor stood adamantly, having absolutely no intention of letting them leave.

"What are you going to do; you can't even get up from your hospital bed right now!" He said, "All you're going to do is get yourselves killed! I am very sorry, but I cannot allow you to leave. That is final!" With that said, the doctor left the room.

Liat growled in frustration as she tried to sit up, but it was true. She couldn't even sit up because the pain emitting from her shoulder was simply too taxing for her body.

"He's going to get himself killed!" Malachi hollered, anger and fear coursing through him.

They both continued to struggle with the fight to sit up in their hospital bed, but after five minutes they both passed out from exhaustion. Malachi and Liat were not going to be able to stop Tony from going on the mission.


End file.
